Armed Forces of Luthori
The''' Luthori Armed Forces', officially the '''Armed Forces of the Holy Luthori Empire' are the military of the Holy Luthori Empire. The Armed Forces are divided into three uniformed professional branches: the Army of the Holy Luthori Empire, the Imperial Air Force, and the Imperial Navy. The Luthori armed forces are ranked as one of the top militaries in the world by Gath Defense Collective. The Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces is the Emperor of Luthori, Charles X of the House of Steuart-Geharon, to whom military members swear personal fealty. The Emperor appoints the Chief of the Imperial General Staff, who serves as the overall day-to-day leader of the Armed Forces and is responsible for the planning and execution of operations and plans as well as advising the Emperor on matters of defense. The Imperial General Staff is comprised of various departments and sub-staffs which manage and operate the military on a day-to-day basis. Luthori is one of the few nations to posses nuclear weapons, though over time their nuclear weapon stockpile has been over-inflated to present a much stronger image, Gath Defense Collective recently reported a stockpile of around 300 nuclear weapons in their possession. This is further confirmed by reports by various independent watchdogs regarding nuclear weapons and nuclear associated materials. Luthori first tested nuclear weapons in 1999 and again in 2004 before achieving the ability to create them relatively easily. Responsibility for the management of Luthori's nuclear weapons rests primarily with the Imperial Air Force, though the Imperial Navy is believed to maintain its own submarine-based nuclear capability. History The Holy Luthori Empire has a strong military tradition with experience waging great campaigns on land and at sea. In accordance with the 3859 Defense White Paper penned by the Cavalier Party (Luthori) Defense Minister Arnulf Bruce, the military has changed dramatically in recent years, becoming a modern and heavily professionalized force. Overview Academies Image:Army A.JPG|Imperial Army Academy : Fort William, Orange Image:Naval A.JPG|Philip I Naval Academy : Sandulka, Geharon Image:Air Force A.JPG|Imperial Air Force College : Oalapo, Utagia Statistics TO BE ANNOUNCED Budget Doctrine The military has long been a bastion of royalist sentiment in Luthori. As part of his or her training, every heir apparent spends a portion of their education in one of the branches of the military. This is deemed necessary because of the Emperor's status as the supreme commander of the military and thus his ability to overrule any order. Upon their enlistment, new recruits are required to swear an additional oath of loyalty to the Emperor and the Holy Luthori Empire. Indeed, the military is often called the "Iron Fist of the Emperor". Their battlecry is "All hail Luthori!" Tyrian Lance Regarded by many as the "old guard" of the monarchy, Tyrian Lance is the most powerfull, prominent and influential monarchist activist organization, at least in the military, if not in the whole Empire. It was originally founded in 2767 by former members of the Royal Aristocratic Party at its dissolution and aristocratic soldiers with links to the isolationist and nationalist elements which would one day come to dominate the Geharon Conservative Party. They are partially responsible for sweeping pro-monarchist legislation passed in the end of the XXVIII cenutry and throughout the XXIX century. Representing an ultra-monarchist, strongly reactionary yet strongly darwinistic point of view, Tyrian Lance is made up of both aristocrats and commoners who wish to expand the privileges and powers of the Luthori monarchy and aristocracy while paradoxically making sure the latter remains extremely competitive and that nobles continue to perform as elites. Many of its members wish for the return of an absolute monarchy and great expansions of the nobles' rights, while one of the group's recent goals has been to deny non-ethnic Luthorians membership in the military as well as to push for easier purging of "weaklings" from the ranks of the nobility. Indeed, Tyrian Lance sees itself as the natural guardian of the superior status of the monarchy and wishes it to remain as elite as possible. Tyrian Lance does not discriminate against new nobles and in favour of the old aristocracy but actively works for the removal of nobles it considers are underperforming. While Tyrian lance encourages the flexible nature of the nobility, it pushes for strong distinctions between nobles and commoners and the establishment of additional aristocratic privileges. Polls and estimates show that a majority of all nobles and anywhere from a third to half of all military officers are members of Tyrian Lance, reflective of the military's strongly meritocrati and competitive nature. Numbers are higher in the navy than the army and highest in the air force, where one out of two fighter pilots is a Tyrian Lancer, with many of the rest being sympathizers. Tyrian Lance also has leverage in the civilian government, maintaining strong affiliations with certain members of the Geharon Conservative Party and the general Luthorian "religious right", as well as having excellent relations with social darwinists, free market fundamentalists and anti-egalitarians. Nobility Although nobles and knights do not have any additional privileges in the Armed Forces, per se, many of the military's commanders are knighted and many nobles follow a martial tradition of military service, thus joining the military is statistically one of the least difficult ways of becoming part of Luthori's aristocracy. Indeed, the Armed Forces is the sector which contains the most noblemen, since a large proportion of officers are aristocrats, although there is an equal number of aristocrats who were given titles after they joined and aristocrats who held titles prior to their joining the military. Tyrian Lance's prominence means that a staggering majority of nobles in the military hold conservative, if not reactionary political views. Strategy When Luthori uses force, it is always to accomplish precise political goals that are achievable by military means and that are determined by the Emperor and His government and Privy Council. After those objectives are given, the political government has no say in how the Armed Forces achieves these objectives, since it is not in control of the Armed Forces and has stepped out of its area of expertize. Indeed, the Luthori government runs on specialization, politicians thus specialize in setting goals while the military specializes in reaching those goals. The Emperor appoints a Chief of the Imperial general Staff and Lord Constable, who bears the Emperor's authority to command the military and is its executive commander. The Lord Constable must be the man best suited for the job and an expert in military strategy and the man at the top of the competitve pyramid that is the military. The Imperial Military's most important strategic advantage is its ability to project power, known as the "Iron Fist of the Emperor", anywhere in the world, thanks to its huge fleet of warships, long range warplanes and intercontinental ballistic missiles. Troops can quickly be dispatched to trouble zones and can rapidly initiate massive invasions if need be. The command structure is clear and decentralized which allows every individual fighting unit to perform at peak efficiency. The military has no restrictions on the weapons and the means it can use to achieve set strategic goals. Indeed, Luthori Military Law indicates that the commander must use whatever means he believes is the most efficient to carry out a set goal. This means the Holy Military is free to use extremely controversial tactics such as biological warfare and the destruction of civilian targets. Army of the Holy Luthori Empire The Army of the Holy Luthori Empire is Luthoria's most senior and largest military service, with a concentration on ground warfare. It is commanded by the Chief of Army Staff, who works out of the Imperial General Staff's headquarters at Plantagenet Castle, Fort William, and maintains a manpower of roughly 375,000. The Army is divided into two primary component forces: the conscripted Yeomanry and the fully professional Imperial Troops. The Yeomanry, which has a strength of 275,000 troops at any one time, is a conscripted defense force. It is comprised primarily of Luthori youth rotating through their mandatory post-secondary education 18 month tour of national service, and a cadre of professional officers and non-commissioned officers. It is territorially based and a mostly mechanized infantry force, with 16 mechanized and armor divisions. The Imperial Troops form the core of the regular army, a comparatively elite, fully professionalized force of approximately 100,000 who have been selected and contracted to serve on beyond their initial national service. These are the troops who are typically used to project power abroad. The three most prestigious components include the fearsome Colonial Legion, recruited from the Empire's former possessions to project Luthori power abroad, the Imperial Life Guards, responsible for the protection of the Emperor, and the Parachute Hussars, an airmobile cavalry force. The Imperial Troops also include amphibious, artillery, aviation, engineer, intelligence, transport, and supply elements. The Imperial Troops are functionally organized into 20 brigades. Organization *'Army' - Comprising several corps. Commanded by a Marshal. *'Corps' - 20,000 troops (15,000 combat troops and 5,000 support staff). Comprised of 2 divisions, an Imperial Legion is the largest combat force the Luthori Army can field. An Imperial Legion is typically commanded by a General. *'Division' - 10,000 troops (9,000 combat troops and 1,000 support staff). Comprised of 2 brigades and typically commanded by a Major General. *'Brigade' - 5,000 troops (4,500 combat troops and 500 support staff). Comprised of 5 battalions and typically commanded by a Brigadier. *'Battalion' - 1,000 troops (800 combat troops and 200 support staff). Comprised of 5 companies and typically commanded by a Colonel. *'Company' - 200 troops (200 combat troops). Comprised of 5 platoons and typically commanded by a Captain. *'Platoon' - 40 troops (40 combat troops). Comprised of 4 squads and typically commanded by a Lieutenant. *'Squad' - 10 troops (10 combat troops). Comprised of 2 teams and typically commanded by a Sergeant. *'Team' - 2 to 5 troops (2 to 5 combat troops). Commanded by a Corporal. Imperial Air Force The Imperial Air Force is the main aerial warfare branch of the armed forces of the Holy Empire. It is commanded by the The Imperial Air Force is the main aerial warfare branch of the armed forces of the Holy Empire. It is commanded by the Chief of Air Staff, who is also based at Plantagenet Castle, Fort William. It consists of approximately 25,000 personnel and 374 aircraft. It's primary roles include strategic bombing, air supremacy, maritime patrols, airlift capability and close air support to ground forces, The Air Force's Strategic Operations Command take primary responsibility for Luthori nuclear, biological and chemical weapons programs as well as any military-related Luthori space activities, research and weapons laboratories as well as test facilities. Due to the highly sensitive nature of this organization, its inner workings are a closely guarded secret of Luthori. Gath Defense Collective and various independent government and international watchdogs have placed the number of Luthori nuclear weapons around 300 while an estimated 200 biological and chemical weapons have been produced. Members of the SOC have neither confirmed nor denied this, though the number is believed to be accurate. The SOC is also responsible for overseeing the missile defense program which Luthori has built in various places throughout the nation. The SOC also supervises the nation's extensive use of spy satellites, their coordination with command structures from the army, air force and navy and the missile defense system. Some of the SOC's recent research has been on creating laser eapons capable of destroying incoming ballistic missiles. Such technology is said to have been successfully integrated into certain units., who is also based at Plantagenet Castle, Fort William. It consists of approximately 25,000 personnel and 374 aircraft. It's primary roles include strategic bombing, air supremacy, maritime patrols, airlift capability and close air support to ground forces, The Air Force's Strategic Operations Command take primary responsibility for Luthori nuclear, biological and chemical weapons programs as well as any military-related Luthori space activities, research and weapons laboratories as well as test facilities. Due to the highly sensitive nature of this organization, its inner workings are a closely guarded secret of Luthori. Gath Defense Collective and various independent government and international watchdogs have placed the number of Luthori nuclear weapons around 300 while an estimated 200 biological and chemical weapons have been produced. Members of the SOC have neither confirmed nor denied this, though the number is believed to be accurate. The SOC is also responsible for overseeing the missile defense program which Luthori has built in various places throughout the nation. The SOC also supervises the nation's extensive use of spy satellites, their coordination with command structures from the army, air force and navy and the missile defense system. Some of the SOC's recent research has been on creating laser eapons capable of destroying incoming ballistic missiles. Such technology is said to have been successfully integrated into certain units. Organization *'Command' - Grouping of stations into geographic regions. Luthori is divided up into three commands while each colony is divided up according to size. *'Group' - Grouping of stations in a specific area or region. Commanded by a Group Commander (rank tba). *'Station' - 2 wings (80 air craft, 800 personnel). Commanded by a Station Commander (rank tba). *'Wing' - 4 Squadrons (40 air craft, 400 personnel). Commanded by a Wing Leader (rank tba). *'Squadron' - 2 Flights (10 air craft, 100 personnel). Commanded by a Squadron Commander (rank tba). *'Flight' - 5 air craft, 50 personnel. Commanded by a Flight Lieutenant (rank tba). Holy Imperial Navy The headquarters of the His Majesty's Holy Imperial Navy is the Admiralty in Sandulka, Geharon. It is a massive complex and is the strategic and communications center that coordinates all of the Empire's twenty squadrons. The Imperial Navy relies on a carrier-based squadron type of division, although the largest division is a fleet, being composed of 2 to 3 squadrons. Typically, a squadron will generally consist of 1 carrier, 4 battlecruisers, 8 destroyers, 8 attack submarines and 3 ballistic submarines if it is an ICBM firing squadron. The commander of the Imperial Navy is the First Sea Lord, Chief of the Admiralty, who sits on the Privy Council. Equipment, uniforms and ranks Ranks The Holy Imperial Military of Luthori maintain a rigid hierarchy in three branches of the Armed Forces. The Holy Imperial Strategic Operations Department is composed of members from the other three branches to fill its ranks, thus is it is composed almost entirely of officers with a relatively small enlisted soldier population. Regardless of whether or not a commanding officer holds a title of nobility, all soldiers are expected to be unflinchingly obedient. Insubordination is punished by whipping and refusal to follow orders is a capital crime, although the reigning military culture makes both of these extraordinarily rare. In certain circumstances, soldiers are permitted to suggest courses of action to their commanding officers, but may never refuse to follow an order. Indeed, a soldier following an order is never guilty in the eyes of Imperial Military Law. Rather, a commander who gives bad orders that leads to loses, defeat or unwanted damage is guilty and will be court marshaled. The last known case was the court marshal of Talmorschland Ducal Armed Forces generals during the Talmorschland rebellion who were subsequently court marshaled and executed. There have been no known occasions since that event occurred some 200 years ago and there have never been such judiciary actions in the Luthorian Armed Forces, seeing as the guilty generals were part of the Talmorschland Ducal Armed Forces and not the regular Luthori Military. The one and only situation in which a soldier may disobey a direct order is if that order is one of aggression towards the Empire. A reflection of Luthori society as a whole as well as its nobility, the Holy Imperial Military is meritocratic in the purest form. Advancement is based solely upon a soldier's abilities and competition is omni-present. Nobles are favored for advancement because their titles already signify above-average competence, but a commoner who beats a noble for a high-rank promotion may well be ennobled himself, at the expense of the nobleman. Nepotism and favoritism are strictly forbidden and any officer caught exercising them will be immediately demoted, if not banned from the military. Equipment Uniforms Several centuries ago at the beginning of the modern world, Luthorian armies were very colorful with soldiers wearing bright red uniforms, sailors dark blue and airmen khaki. However, as the art of warfare progresses and becomes deadlier, Luthorian uniforms have also changed and have become a much darker affair. Today's uniforms are either dark grey, dark red or dark blue. Since variations of the three colors exist in all four services, one of the first things Luthorian cadets learn is to distinguish the slight variations in color between sservices and to recognize service rank insignia. As a rule however, higher ranking officers have much more elaborate uniforms than their subordinates and feature more lace and shoulder padding, so in reality it is quite simple to distinguish between a high admiral and an able seaman. The distinction between a captain and a commodore may however be more difficult. Luthori's ancient traditional uniforms are taken out from time to time for special historic parades and exhibits and are displayed here. Image:Army Officer.JPG|Imperial Army Officer Image:Soldier.JPG|Imperial Army Soldier Image:Yishelem Troops.JPG|Colonial Yishelem Soldier Image:Yishelem Officer.JPG|Colonial Yishelem Officer Image:New Alduria Troops.JPG|Colonial New Alduria Soldier Image:New Alduria Officer.JPG|Colonial New Alduria Officer Image:Raj Troops.JPG|Colonial Raj Soldier Image:Raj Officer.JPG|Colonial Raj Officer Image:Sailor.JPG|Imperial Naval Sailor Image:Naval Officer.JPG|Imperial Naval Officer Image:Airman.JPG|Imperial Airforce Piolt Image:Air Officer.JPG|Imperial Airforce Officer Current deployments The following is a list of the military units currently deployed away from the Empire: -Battlegroup Yishelem: 220'000 men, Kingdom of Yishelem (XXI, XXII, XXIII, XIV, XV, XVI, XVII, XVIII, XIX, XX, XXI Legions) -Battlefleet Orion: South Sea, off the coast of Yishelem (Carrier Groups IV, V, VI) -Battlefleet Trinity: In blockade off the coast of Sekowo (Carrier groups XII, XIII) -Battlefleet Scarabus: In blockade off the coast of Sekowo (Carrier Groups VII, VIII, IX, X, XI) Luthori